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The Physician Benefits from Palliative Medicine by James C. Salwitz, MD at KevinMD.com
Fri, 04/06/2012 - 9:34am
Denying the obvious spread of disease conflicts with what the patient perceives, and what the doctor knows. Even though the goal is to soften difficult news, the result of deception is isolation, confusion and suffering. This exacts a terrible toll on the doctor. However, for many physicians it is not clear what to say or what to offer when therapy fails. What has a physician to offer but false hope?It is hard to lie to patients who are dying. To look a fellow human in the eye and tell them “everything will be OK,” is painful. To give treatment that is unlikely to work is emotionally exhausting. To watch someone die having never been honest causes burnout.
The only real choice for a physician is to tell the truth. Physicians owe their patients complete information, and compassionate prognosis. The communication of realistic goals in terminal disease, takes patience, experience and compassion. Gently confirming that the disease is increasing and defining what is truly possible is to allow real comfort. Setting achievable goals of life quality is a gift to the patient and family. Nonetheless, for doctors trained in diagnosis and cure, it may not be obvious how to transition to compassion and comfort.
In treating patients at the end of their lives, the physician benefits from palliative medicine. Instead of the frustration of giving useless treatment and contrary advise, there is the satisfaction of a patient who feels better. Instead of medicine that may not work, there is therapy to improve quality. Instead of pulling patients away from their families, the doctor can help each patient share this important part of life.
The physician never has to desert his patient, but can maintain that vital relationship throughout each life. Through honestly communicating and using the techniques of palliative care, a physician has the satisfaction of really helping. In addition, the doctor knows that patients receiving quality “end-of-life” care, actually may live longer.
Hospice is good medicine for doctors. They do not need to give the false “hope” of life forever. The physician can always give true “Hope” that their patients will live with dignity and they will walk the path together.
James C. Salwitz is an oncologist who blogs at Sunrise Rounds.
Please go to the link for this blog post at KevinMD and see how this appears at their site. See what else they're up to, I LOVE this blog site, and the comments they have from their followers. At Lumigrate, I work to create a wheel that is unique to the type of information we promote, and do it by linking and collaborating with good wheels out there. KevinMD is definitely one. This streamlines things for YOU finding quality information sources and supports the GRATE resources out there (and not the others). Win/win! www.kevinmd.com/blog/2012/04/physician-benefits-palliative-medicine.html
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Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!
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What came to be named 'Lumigrate' a year into my creating the concept and heading into a live immersion in integrative medicine now serves as a platform for me and other professional who guide people to information they wish for their patients/consumers to have.
I was working this week with two cases which were very diverse in age and direction, and in one case I had subject matter for EVERY topic I was bringing up in my plan of suggestions for them to use with their team around them supporting them in their health, wellness, and career. In the other case, I found myself separately educating about the person's stated desire to not STOP but slow down the fighting of what was going on with their complex medical situation and embrace a more 'go with the flow' of things.
The person and family member acting as lead advocate had never heard of 'palliative care' and their previous medical team had not ever stopped to figure out why the person/patient was not going to their scheduled medical appointments and turning down interventions suggested to them. I am working with the incoming team, recruited by the family member who is not a medical industry savvy person in the past and who has very limited time due to career and immediate family demands on time and energy.
I have signed up with KevinMD and receive their e-newsletters routinely; this topic was one in the list of a newsletter that came in within hours of my wishing I had something like this on Lumigrate. So I created this topic to use it for this case at this time and it will then be here for my future needs and those of all who come to Lumigrate.com.
I trust that I have encouraged people to follow the link, and that KevinMD will appreciate that I am highlighting them in this manner and truly ENCOURAGING people to go to their site -- look around -- sign up for all the things you can do to stay connected with this powerful resource. And I do, when time allows, communicate with the sites to know of our support of them; many wonderful connections have come from my doing this in the past. In the mean time, I hope my explanation here will suffice and I hope that anyone with questions contacts me via Contact us. ~~ Mardy
Live and Learn. Learn and Live Better! is my motto. I'm Mardy Ross, and I founded Lumigrate in 2008 after a career as an occupational therapist with a background in health education and environmental research program administration. Today I function as the desk clerk for short questions people have, as well as 'concierge' services offered for those who want a thorough exploration of their health history and direction to resources likely to progress their health according to their goals. Contact Us comes to me, so please do if you have questions or comments. Lumigrate is "Lighting the Path to Health and Well-Being" for increasing numbers of people. Follow us on social networking sites such as: Twitter: http://twitter.com/lumigrate and Facebook. (There is my personal page and several Lumigrate pages. For those interested in "groovy" local education and networking for those uniquely talented LumiGRATE experts located in my own back yard, "LumiGRATE Groove of the Grand Valley" is a Facebook page to join. (Many who have joined are beyond our area but like to see the Groovy information! We not only have FUN, we are learning about other providers we can be referring patients to and 'wearing a groove' to each other's doors -- or websites/home offices!) By covering some of the things we do, including case examples, it reinforces the concepts at Lumigrate.com as well as making YOU feel that you're part of a community. Which you ARE at Lumigrate!